Kemo
06-05-2023, 09:27 PM
NXT talent were told that they should be angry about being on the gold brand and that nobody was their friend, according to Sami Zayn.
After years making a name as El Generico, the Syrian-Canadian Superstar debuted for NXT in 2013, and would instantly become a hit with audiences. In late 2014, Zayn would capture the NXT Championship, but his reign would be short-lived and he would lose the title to Kevin Owens two months later. After an injury in 2015 forced him to miss months of action, Zayn returned in late 2015 and would be called up to the main roster in 2016.
Sami Zayn in NXT
While Zayn's fun-loving approach to life has made him very likable, his time in NXT wasn't supposed to be spent making friends. Speaking on After the Bell, Zayn recalled the mentality drilled into NXT talent at the time.
“I remember when I got to WWE, it was NXT or something like that, it was very much the mentality of, ‘you should be furious that you’re here. You should want to get out of here. You should want to get on the road. Everyone around you is your enemy, they are all vying for your spot. This is a competition. You have to be the best to get out of here. If you don’t want to be the best, you shouldn’t even work here.’
"I remember a line something to the extent of, ‘If you don’t want to be the next John Cena, you shouldn’t even be here.’ I remember hearing that and being completely [mouth agape]. ‘What? This is insanity.’ Let’s just say we’re in a room with 100 people, let’s just say the next John Cena is in this room. There’s only one, so the other 99 people in this room should be miserable at all times trying to aspire to be that person? What kind of insanity is that?”
Zayn spent his entire NXT run as a babyface, and returned to being a clear-cut babyface earlier this year after his exit from The Bloodline. At WrestleMania 39, Zayn headlined the show of shows for the first time, teaming with Kevin Owens on Night One to capture the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championships from The Usos.
After years making a name as El Generico, the Syrian-Canadian Superstar debuted for NXT in 2013, and would instantly become a hit with audiences. In late 2014, Zayn would capture the NXT Championship, but his reign would be short-lived and he would lose the title to Kevin Owens two months later. After an injury in 2015 forced him to miss months of action, Zayn returned in late 2015 and would be called up to the main roster in 2016.
Sami Zayn in NXT
While Zayn's fun-loving approach to life has made him very likable, his time in NXT wasn't supposed to be spent making friends. Speaking on After the Bell, Zayn recalled the mentality drilled into NXT talent at the time.
“I remember when I got to WWE, it was NXT or something like that, it was very much the mentality of, ‘you should be furious that you’re here. You should want to get out of here. You should want to get on the road. Everyone around you is your enemy, they are all vying for your spot. This is a competition. You have to be the best to get out of here. If you don’t want to be the best, you shouldn’t even work here.’
"I remember a line something to the extent of, ‘If you don’t want to be the next John Cena, you shouldn’t even be here.’ I remember hearing that and being completely [mouth agape]. ‘What? This is insanity.’ Let’s just say we’re in a room with 100 people, let’s just say the next John Cena is in this room. There’s only one, so the other 99 people in this room should be miserable at all times trying to aspire to be that person? What kind of insanity is that?”
Zayn spent his entire NXT run as a babyface, and returned to being a clear-cut babyface earlier this year after his exit from The Bloodline. At WrestleMania 39, Zayn headlined the show of shows for the first time, teaming with Kevin Owens on Night One to capture the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championships from The Usos.